“Tatau: Marks of Polynesia,” at the Japanese American National Museum in Los Angeles July 30-Jan. 8, looks at the Samoan practice of tattoo and how the patterns and motifs of these works of art help preserve the culture. The show will feature examples of traditional Samoan tattoo, or tatau, along with contemporary Polynesian works and other pieces that have been influenced by the tradition.

“The main basic reason that the exhibit is at the Japanese American National Museum is for civil rights,” “Tatau” curator Takahiro Kitamura said. “This actually fits very well with JANM’s mission statement, because here we’re talking about an art form that helped the Samoan people keep their identity together back then, and even now it affirms identity. Samoa is a very unique population when half of the Samoans in the world live in Samoa, the other half live in the United States, New Zealand.. Hawaii, Guam and other places.”

Kitamura is a master tattoo artist and author who curated “Perseverance: Japanese Tattoo Tradition in a Modern World” for JANM in 2014.

Tatau is 2,000 years old

Samoa’s tradition of tattoo dates back 2,000 years, Kitamura said. The Samoan custom has survived many attempts at eradication, because the islanders kept the designs and patterns alive by incorporating them into other art mediums.

“Samoa, for one reason or another, manages to hold onto their traditions very closely. Some of the other islands have not fared so well. Currently I think we’re in a very good place because a lot of people are having cultural resurgences,” Kitamura said. “Right now there’s a seamless blending of tattooing, religion and Samoan culture.”

Photos highlight exhibit

It took two years for Kitamura to put “Tatau” together, which consists mainly of photographs by John Agcaoili of tattoo artists at work and people with their completed designs. There will also be artifacts and tools associated with tattooing on display.

The exhibit focuses on traditional Samoan and contemporary Polynesian tattoos with the emphasis on the tattoo artists of the Sulu’ape family, such as Petelo Sulu’ape and his late brother Paul Sulu’ape, who are credited with sparking the global resurgence of Samoan tattoos.

See hand-tap and machine tattoos

Many of the artists employ traditional hand-tapping for their work In hand-tapping, the tattoo artist uses a sharpened tool that has been dipped in pigment and is tapped with a stick to force it into the skin, slowly building the design in tiny increments along the body. Assistants are on hand to help stretch the skin and wipe away excess ink and blood.

Sulu’ape Si’i Liufau, owner of A-Town Tattoo in Garden Grove, uses both traditional and modern methods of tattooing in his work and does both traditional Samoan tatau and contemporary Polynesian art. His work will be on display in “Tatau.”

“After I learned how to tattoo, a lot of my family started asking for Samoan tattoos and I realized that I didn’t have a clue what a Samoan tattoo was,” Liufau said. “I recognized one, but I didn’t know how to put one together.”

Liufau decided to embark on a Sulu’ape apprenticeship. While working with tattoo masters, he was reminded of Samoa’s practice of maintaining an oral history, as he was told to listen and watch, taking his lessons to heart rather than writing things down for later study.

One thing Liufau learned was that many of the motifs that are used in Samoan tattooing reflect an animal from folklore and that the stories often served as parables. A tattoo tied to a story is more significant to the client.

“I realized how important it became to really know the material and the stories very intimately because you’re able to make them flex and bend the way you need to tell the story for the client,” Liufau said.

It was a natural progression for Liufau to mix the machine work and hand-tapping.

“It’s an art form and that’s what’s allowed it to grow and go through changes. The art has allowed us to be able to use the tatau not only for traditional men and women’s tattoo, but also when we want in our industry just to be able to give somebody a new experience or a piece of art with the tool,” Liufau said.

Connection is key in ‘Tatau’

Kitamura and Liufau hope that visitors to “Tatau” will not only appreciate the beauty and history of the Samoan art form of tattoo, but also see how its worldwide spread serves to preserve culture.

“This is a really awesome opportunity to have just a little window into what Samoa really is and what this tattoo really connects us to,” Liufau said. “That is one of the things that I think is a great opportunity for people to see and the tatau tradition, the connection to the culture and the people. It also holds us as a people. Here we are 5,000 miles away from home, and this tatau and the culture of Samoa holds us to Samoa wherever we go.”

The opening of “Tatau” on July 30 will include a traditional Samoan ‘ava ceremony, live tattoo demonstrations, a lecture by Sean Mallon, cultural performances and more.

Michelle Mills has been an entertainment and features reporter for the Southern California News Group since 1999. She has interviewed such notables as Weird Al Yankovic, Glen Campbell, Alice Cooper, Debbie Allen, Ernest Borgnine (during an earthquake) and Adam Young (Owl City). She was the 31st Occasional Pasadena Doo Dah Parade Queen reigning 2007-2009. She is a professional belly dancer (swordwork is her specialty) and also studies Polynesian and Tahitian dance.

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